Tag: Make ahead

Japchae

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Japchae was the first Korean dish I tasted when I first tried the cuisine years ago as a teenager. It became one of my favorites but I rarely order it at a restaurant anymore because I’ve learned to cook it at home.

These results are restaurant quality and totally worth the payoff. Don’t substitute these sweet potato noodles — they’re worth seeking out for their chewy, slippery texture that soaks up all the flavor. Best of all, japchae reheats well and tastes just as good the next day.

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 1 cup julienned carrots
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 cups thinly sliced onions
  • 1 cup julienned red bell pepper
  • 1 cup julienned button mushrooms
  • 1 cup julienned filet mignon
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 pound dried dangmyeon (Korean sweet potato starch noodles), cooked according to package directions
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions, for garnish
  • 1 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Directions:

  1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add carrots, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until half-tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Repeat with 1 tablespoon oil, onions, peppers, and mushrooms and add to bowl.
  2. Wipe skillet clean; heat remaining oil. Add steak and garlic and cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Add soy sauce and sugar and cook until sugar dissolves. Pour over vegetables in a bowl, add noodles and sesame oil, and toss. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Sichuan-Style Cold Sesame Noodles

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This is one of the earliest recipes I learned to cook and more than fifteen years later, it still remains one of my favorites. This spicy, peanuty noodle salad is easy to make and is perfect for picnics or lunches on the go. It’s worth seeking out Sichuan peppercorns for this dish, as they add a unique, tingly spice that can’t be replicated.

Sichuan-style cold sesame noodles

Ingredients:

1 package (about 12 ounces) fresh Chinese egg noodles
4 teaspoons sesame oil
1 Persian cucumber, julienned
1/4 pound fresh mung bean sprouts
2 cups cooked shredded chicken breast
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground, toasted Sichuan peppercorns

1. Cook noodles in a pot of boiling water according to package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. Place noodles in a bowl and add two teaspoons of sesame oil and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.

2. In the meantime, prepare the dressing: in another bowl, combine broth, peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, remaining sesame oil, chili garlic sauce, sugar, and whisk until blended.

3. Add cucumber, mung bean sprouts, chicken, and dressing over noodles and mix well. Serve cold.

Classic Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

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Brace yourselves, Internet. I’ve found a cookie recipe so simple that even I, perennial great-chef-bad-baker, have managed to produce a chewy, perfect cookie. Ever since the Great Cornbread Disaster of 2007 where I tried my hand at “fluffy” cornbread only to produce cardboard-like tack, I’d doubted myself when it came to anything flour-based. These cookies gave me my groove back.

Oatmeal raisin cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Beat butter and sugars until pale and fluffy. Mix in egg and vanilla, then flour mixture. Mix in oats, then raisins.

2. Using a tablespoon, scoop 1 tablespoon of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing each scoop about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 15 minutes. Let cookies cool on a wire rack.

Mast-o-Khiar (Persian Yogurt with Cucumber and Mint)

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Call it Greek tzatziki, Turkish cacik, or Indian raita, but to me, it’ll always be mast-o-khiar. It’s part of nearly every Iranian meal and couldn’t be easier to prepare. English translations will often call it a dip, and while it can be (raise your hand if you dipped your potato chips into mast-o-khiar while growing up), it’s really eaten as a side dish alongside a complete meal.

Mast-o-khiar can include variations like dried rose petals (how Persian, I know) or dried shallots (in which case it becomes mast-o-musir), but my favorite is this classic version, garnished with a light sprinkling of walnuts.

Mast-o-khiar

Ingredients:

2 cups Middle Eastern or Greek-style yogurt, plain
2 or 3 Persian cucumbers, finely chopped or grated
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons ground dried mint
2 tablespoons walnuts, chopped (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, reserving half a tablespoon of walnuts for garnish. Chill and serve cold.

Truffled Mashed Potatoes

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Truffle oil is so misunderstood. I know, I know, it’s not even made with real truffles. Fair enough, Internet, but it’s delicious and there’s no denying it. I drank the truffle oil Kool-Aid and I’m putting it in everything: pasta, popcorn, and my favorite: mashed potatoes.

With (American) Thanksgiving right around the corner, this mascarpone-flecked dish is one of my favorite holiday sides. Just be sure to go heavy on the truffle oil. And for a decadent treat, add a few shavings of the real thing on top.

Truffled mashed potatoes

Ingredients:

3 pounds medium Yukon Gold potatoes
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
whole milk
3 teaspoons truffle oil

1. Cook potatoes in pot of boiling water until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain, cool slightly, and peel potatoes. Return potatoes to same pot. Add butter and mascarpone cheese; mash until smooth. Mix in enough milk to thin to desired consistency. Mix in truffle oil and season with salt and pepper.